Waving at the ducks today in the park near Independence Hall at Knott's Berry Farm.Dear Annabelle,
I cannot believe how entirely entertaining and fun you are these days. You are growing way too fast, but it is the speed with which you are learning that makes you so enjoyable!
There are moments that I live for: the way you pat me on the back when giving me a hug, when you leave to go for a walk with your dad and then run back into the house smacking your lips asking for a kiss goodbye, when you are crabby and cranky and whiney until I pick you up and you lay your head on my shoulder as if that's all you ever wanted anyway, the way you point with your finger at my eyeball after I say, "I love you" as if to identify the "I" as "eye" and you are trying to sign "I love you" back to me... and especially the way you crawl into bed with me in the morning to wake me up, remove the t-shirt I've thrown over my head while laughing as if it's one eternal peek-a-boo game, then crawl down and point at my water, knowing that I'll sit up and take a sip, then run to the bathroom, knowing that I'll go there next, and then run into your room and point at the chair while holding up your nursing pillow. You've got our morning routine down to tee.
And you have surprised me so much over the past month! Like the time you brought a bottle of nail polish to me and handed it to me and then pointed at it and then pointed at your toes. You have never seen me paint my toes, yet you seemed to have matched that exact bottle of polish to the color I was wearing on my toes. Or this morning when I was having an allergy attack and you brought me a box of kleenex from the bedroom.
Lately you have been fascinated by the smallest things, like ants or flies. Or only what seems small- this week you noticed airplanes and helicopters in the sky, signing "where?" as soon as they fly out of sight.
And last Saturday you finally started to talk! I know that about six months ago you said "mama" over and over. But then you stopped. We haven't heard much other than grunts and babbling for months. Dave assured me that you would talk when you decided to and he was right: you ran into the bedroom with a book opened to a certain page, plopped it down at my feet, pointed at a picture and said, "bay-bee!" very distinctly with a big smile. And then you ran for the bathroom shouting, "Mama! Mama!" Later that day you said, "Up!" when trying to climb up on the couch, and "Dad!" when walking down the hall. Then you pointed at the door and said, "Buh-by"... I think you must have been secretly practicing in private and wanted to just shock me by unleashing all your words in a single day. Now when you wake up in the morning you cry out, "Dad!" knowing he's the one to get up with you when you wake up every day.
But the most impressive thing about you is how happy you are. You smile and laugh your screaming cackling laugh at everything, especially new things. Everything I show you brings a smile. Every new noise, new sight, new toy, new place, new event, new habit makes you happy. I love it. I love it so much!
You are pure joy. Thank you for choosing me to be your mom. My love for you is boundless.
